


To the Last Syllable of Recorded Time (tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow)

by LaughingThalia



Series: Orville Coda [9]
Category: The Orville (TV)
Genre: Alien Cultural Differences, Alien Culture, Alien Gender/Sexuality, Alien Invasion, Alien Planet, Alien Technology, BAMF Women, Episode: S02E14 The Road Not Taken, F/M, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Not A Fix-It, Outer Space, Rebellion, Rescue Missions, Resistance, Robots, Safe Haven, Saving the World, Team as Family, Time Travel, Women Being Awesome, Women in the Military
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-03
Updated: 2019-05-23
Packaged: 2020-02-16 09:17:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 10,686
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18688573
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LaughingThalia/pseuds/LaughingThalia
Summary: --"Look at the sunset every night."----"Look at you every morning."--...---They had failed.----The Orville had been sitting at the bottom of the ocean for nine months, of course it didn't have enough energy to bend the fabric of time an space.-





	1. The Way To Dusty Death

**Author's Note:**

> The Season 2 finale got me back in the mood to write.

**They had failed.**

 

The remaining crew had jumped into their beat up shuttle and made a run for it as soon as the Kaylon had come for them and the time machine hasn’t worked. The ship had been sitting under the freaking Ocean for nine months, of course it didn’t have enough energy to bend the fabric of space and time.  

Ed was quick on the jump, taking to his position in the Captain’s chair like a duck to water, he immediately ushered Ty and Marcus to the shuttle and sent Talla for Dr Finn.

The rest of us followed, guns drawn and tensions high. The brown leather I was wearing now was a lot more stealthy than my old bright green lieutenant's uniform but when we were this close to being wiped out by a race of evil robots I would much prefer be sitting in the Orville Mess Hall with an older version of herself and an Ed Mercer that didn’t love her than about to be the reason this crew died.

It was by a pure miracle and Gordon’s fancy flying that they all somehow managed to get out of there alive. 

John LaMarr; Talla Keyali; Claire, Ty and Marcus Finn; Bortus; Gordon Malloy; Ed Mercer and herself Kelly Grayson. The Orville.

Ed told them to take inventory whilst he plotted a course to the edge of the Calivon system. The Kaylon would kill them, at least the with the Calivon they stood a chance of surviving, even if it was in zoo as entertainment. 

She found it painfully ironic that 7 years on she hadn’t managed to achieve any of the things she scolded Future!Kelly for failing at. She wasn’t married (although Ed had just proposed and wasn’t that just cosmic poetry), she didn’t have kids, she wasn’t Captain because they’re was no Union because most of the admiralty was dead as well as most of the species involved in it and the people who were supposed to be her friends really only barely knew her.

A sudden thought occurred to her, something Future Ed had said in passing once on one of their dates “Wait, Gordon. I have an idea.”

“Your idea was what got us into this situation in the first place.” He snapped back, still watching the screens for signs they’d been tailed.

Kelly tried not to take it too personally, he was after all right, “You have no idea how much I think about that every day. But I’ve lived through another timeline, there was something there that never got found here. A secret network of female Moclan who escaped into a secluded planet hidden by a class 6 Nebula.”

Bortus, who had been understandably up until that point looked up sharply, “Moclans?”

“Yes. In the other timeline we tried to get them Union rights but the Moclans weren't really for it and we needed them for weapons, to defeat the Kaylon. I mean we protected them but we didn’t exactly help them either. If we can find them, maybe they’re still there, like they were. Maybe it’s safe.”

“Do you know where they are?" Gordon asked, intrigued.

She wrinkled her nose in distaste, "I’ve seen pictures of it, Future!Ed showed me the massive nebula that hides it. I would know it on sight but I don't have a location.”

Ed sighed “We can’t really use the Unions logs to find all the nebulas, they’re not backed up on the Shuttle.”

Gordon frowned “I know where a _few_ are but if it’s not the right one then we’re kind of screwed.”

Ed thought for a second, looking at the 6 adults and 2 children that had suddenly come under his charge. He didn’t know why they were following him, they barely even knew him, but they were and Ed Mercer wasn’t about to let them down. “Stay on course for the Calivon System, we have the food synthesiser and we have power. We can plan our next move from the relative safety and we can try and work out which nebula could be the right one. Once we're more certain and better rested we can make our move to the Moclan planet.”

Everyone seemed on board with that plan, glad to have a place to bunker down and rest, even if just for a bit.

When the Kaylons had turned they’d all learnt pretty quickly how to fend for themselves but it was nice to have a crew again, it reminded them all of the Union.

Claire sent her kids to get some rest and then she fell asleep herself, holding Ty’s hand. 

 

Gordon had once happily told her about the weird relationship Claire had with Isaac, how in love she'd been, how happy. Kelly had taken that away from her.

 

She stared at the two little boys who she had come to know in both timelines.

 

These boys were a lot more subdued. They were a lot more scared. They had been forced to grow up so much quicker.

 

She had done that to them.

 

Marcus has had to shoot at killer robots, he had been shot at, he had been _this_ close to dying before Kelly had crashed into them on her quest to reunite the Orville crew and swooped them to safety in the nick of time.

 Kelly remembered the faces of all the people who she had had to leave behind.

 

All the people she had deemed unimportant to her plan because she could reverse it. She could fix this whole thing.

 

She felt like a fool now when she pictures the Orville shutting down, Claire lying on the table waiting to be taken to the past, waiting to fix all of Kelly’s mistakes and nothing happening. 

There was no taking it back now. In theory they could make another one so long as LaMarr remained alive. He was smart, once he’d understood Isaac’s work he could duplicate it, but would they ever get enough power to try again? There weren't many intact ships with power they could tap left in the galaxy.

Her brain hurt at the implications of time travel, she’d only ever gotten a C in time theory herself and she’d never brushed up on her skills even when she’d literally travelled through time. She realised as Gordon flew them to the edge of the system she really wouldn’t be much help and decided to get some sleep as well. 

She thought sleeping would be hard when she had the Universe’s death on her hands but she must have been more tired than she thought because she was asleep as soon as her eyes closed.


	2. Full of Sound and Fury

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kelly woke to a sound she hadn't heard for a very long time.
> 
> It was a distress signal. 
> 
> A union vessel calling for help.

Kelly woke up to a sound she hadn't heard in a long time.

She hadn't heard it in s long it took her a second to even remember what that harsh buzzing sound was "Distress signal!" She suddenly realised, eyes snapping open and her attention fully on the pilot seats where Ed and Gordon must have crashed later last... night really isn't the right word in the middle of space.

Her yelling seemed to have shaken the tiredness off of everyone else because suddenly they were all awake, looking over the message they'd been sent over emergency channels. "They say they're a union ship that lost main engine power and they can't get it started without help." Ed relayed to the rest of the group.

Claire sighed "That could be a trap."

John agreed but added another point "It could also be completely real. Union ships are designed to Life Support is always the last thing to turn off. They could very well have been floating dead for the past nine months."

Kelly pointed out quickly "And the Kaylon never found them?"

"They're targeting planets and rebellions. I doubt they'd pay attention to a ship like that for quiet a while." Ed countered. "If it's real we can't leave them."

"Agreed, but how do we know they're real?" Claire asked. Dr Finn was the living embodiment of 'do no harm', if she could help the people on that ship she absolutely would but she also wasn't about to go waltzing back into the arms of the Kaylon with her boys in tow and no back up.

"We won't know for sure until we get close enough to scan for bodies." Gordon reminded everyone as he slowly turned the shuttle in the direction of the signal "By the time we do if it's Kaylon, they'll already be able to shoot us out of the sky." He didn't know these guys very well but he did know that every single one of them wanted to help.

Kelly tried not to think about how if they got 'shot out of the sky' they're ship would spin for basically eternity with no air resistance to slow them down unless they crashed. "I say we do it. We can't risk it."

Gordon felt vindicated when everyone else agreed and he started off in the direction of the ship.

When it came into view it became very clear that it was a Union vessel. the pristine white was marred by battle damage and one of the propulsion loops on the back where missing but the ship would still fly to see another day if they could get the power back on.

Ed hailed them "This is um Ed Mercer, ex Union officer aboard a shuttle. We got your distress call."

"Oh thank God, Mercer." came the relieved voice on the other end of the line. 

Ed could almost smack himself for not recognising the ship sooner it was the USS Olympia and on the screen in front of him was none other than Admiral Ozawa "Admiral!"

She smiled weakly "No need for that Ed, the Union's gone." 

"With all due respect ma'am, as long as we're still here the Union is never gone." Ed replied firmly. He and Gordon had been scrimping by for months and sure they're time travel plan had failed but being around more Union members had reminded him why he'd joined in the first place. As Ozawa opened the Olympia's bay doors Ed signalled for Gordon to dock. "I have an engineer on board to help with the engines, and a doctor too if you need one."

Ozawa waved her hand "That won't be necessary, my crew was lucky. We were on a mission out of range when they attacked so we have very minor casualties we just need a jump start really, form another ship. My engineer said your shuttle should do the trick." 

"Great, then I can fill you in on our plan."

"You have a plan?" She asked in disbelief "We've just been running and hiding."

Ed laughed humourlessly "We've been doing a lot of that recently too. Lieutenant Kitan's rebellion got sniffed out by the Kaylon so we realised we needed to do something more. We were going to go to the Calivon system to hide on the edges for a while and then find a hidden planet we heard about." A lightbulb went off in his head "Are the data logs in tact?"

"Yes they are."

"Could Commander Grayson get a look at them?"

"Halsey's girl? Of course." 

Usually Kelly would hate being called that, it implied she only got her position because Admiral Halsey was a friend of her fathers even though that wasn't true at all, but at the mention of her father's friend Kelly perked up, "Speaking of, have you heard from Halsey?"

Ozawa shook her head ruefully "I'm sorry, I haven't. But you can't think the worst I mean you probably hadn't heard from me in nine months and here I am."

It was unlike Ozawa to be so openly optimistic, the Kaylon invasion really changed her.

As soon as they'd docked and had stepped onto the ship, their Chief of security, a large and sturdy Moclan who gave Bortus a sincere hug upon seeing him, escorted them all to some guest rooms where they could shower and get cleaned up. Ed unplugged his food synthizer in case the jumpstart fried the electrics and left his shuttle in the hands of the Olympia's engineer.

Kelly had gone to the library instead, determined to find the correct nebula so that at least one of her world saving plan worked.

It became abundantly clear that after a while a lot of nebulas start to look like a lot of other nebulas and when she got tired of staring at the swirly lights she just remembered why she was doing this. A safe place to hide out from the Kaylon.

By the time Kelly came hurrying into the cockpit where Ed, John and Ozawa were trading war stories everyone had already had enough time to dress, change and eat a decent meal. "Ed I found it! I found the nebula with the planet!" She displayed the location on the screen and they all looked at each other.

Ozawa smiled at Kelly "Mercer, I say we skip Calivon altogether and head straight there. The sooner we're out of main space, the better."

Ed looked around at the pilot "The engines are back online?"

"Aye Sir."

"Sir-?" Ed almost sputtered. He wasn't higher ranked than the pilot technically since he served on a ship directly under an admiral.

"Well you are sitting in the chair."

Ed looked down to find himself planted firmly in the First Mate's chair. "Oh um-"

"Ed, the Union's not going to yell at you for sitting in the wrong chair. I know I'm a stickler for the rules but now's not the time. Let's just go. Set a course for that nebula."

The pilot repeated her earlier statement "Aye Sir." but this time facing the Admiral, the ship shook as the engines came online for the first time in months but it stabalised instantly and soon they were off.

 

"Engage hyperdrive."

 

"Hyperdrive engaged."

 

Kelly grinned, they were heading to safety. Finally.


	3. Life's But A Walking Shadow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s not often that they landed their ships on a planet, especially a planet that didn’t have a proper docking station, but today they had landed their two huge starships in the least dense area of the planet they could find and winced at the creaking sound the old scavenger ship made when it hit the ground.
> 
> Ozawa pulled out a few white flags and they all hiked over the moderately flat but incredibly dry terrain to find the Moclans who supposedly inhabited the planet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Where are my Macbeth fans at?

It’s not often that they landed their ships on a planet, especially a planet that didn’t have a proper docking station, but today they had landed their two huge starships in the least dense area of the planet they could find and winced at the creaking sound the old scavenger ship made when it hit the ground. 

 

Ozawa pulled out a few white flags and they all hiked over the moderately flat but incredibly dry terrain to find the Moclans who supposedly inhabited the planet.

They moved in organised lines, in keeping with their protocols, only members of the security staff had brought weapons and they were hidden under their jackets to avoid any conflict. 

Talla stood to Ed’s right, watching Ed and Kelly's backs and Ozawa’s own Moclan head of security and Bortus stood to The Admiral’s left. It took Ed by surprised when he realised they were up the front because they were looking to him to leadership, they were protecting the apparent people in charge, even Admiral Ozawa who had never really liked Ed had followed him here on their words alone.

Ed had wanted to ask what had happened to Ozawa’s deputy as soon as he’d realised he’d been sitting in his seat on the Olympia but from the look everyone has given him when the pilot had called him Sir, it couldn’t have been good.

They came across a house relatively soon after only 40 minutes of walking and Kelly and Ozawa knocked on the door. It was a small house, and it was definitely some kind of farming family evident by the field visible form the back and the few animals Ed didn't quite recognise.

The little Moclan girl who opened the door seemed very shocked to see them all but she didn't seem scared, just a bit confused. “MOOOOM DAAAAD!” She yelled back into the house, not taking her eyes off the strangers at the door.

Two adult Moclans came to the door instantly, stepping protectively in front of their daughter. “Who are you?” The father asked cautiously.

“I’m Admiral Ozawa and this is Lieutenant Grayson. We’re from the Union. We need to talk to who ever’s in charge.”

Their eyes widened as they looked behind the two woman at the gaggle of tired and weary union soldiers, some still in uniform, some wearing the worn leathers of the rebellion. “Oh my stars. You’re Union officers? Our house isn’t very big but we will get you water and a place to rest your feet until we can get in contact with our leader, Haveena.”

“Thank you so much.” Ozawa thanked her genuinely.

The mother quickly sent their daughter to get as much water as she could and she sent her mate to call Haveena before embracing the two woman in a hug “We have heard what’s been going on out there. I’m so sorry we stood by.”

Kelly shook her head in understanding “Don’t be, it was the right move, staying put like this. You guys might be the only untouched planet in Union space.”

Kelly figured a small population probably aided in the speed they managed to get a direct line to the leader of a planet. Haveena was amazing. Her and Ed made a few witty wise cracks back and forth and they all traded general stories, how'd they'd gotten there. Kelly tried to be as vague as possible about the whole time travel thing, they still hadn't told the Admiral about their failed plan and until they had a way to complete it none of them had seen any use in informing everyone else and giving them false hope. She had instantly offered them shelter, a plot of land where they could build their houses and was sending a convoy to meet them so they could discuss the particulars in person.

Everything was so quick and free of the bureaucracy  that had bogged the Union down in recent years it almost gave Ed whiplash.

As quick as Haveena was, her convey was no where near as fast and so Ozawa decided to send almost everyone back to the ships and her main crew of Ed, Kelly, Bortus, her head of security, Crox to stay with the family where the convey would pick them up in the morning.

 

 

 

 

The family introduced themselves as Zan, the mother; Olies, the father and their daughter Youro. It was weird. I had been years since she'd sat around a family table and eaten dinner. Even with everything that had been going on this right here, this still existed and Kelly got to bear witness.

It was beautiful. Zan and Olies were so kind and inviting and with them being on such a secluded planet Youro was abuzz with questions about the galaxy. Ed answered most of her questions, talking about the universe as it once had been, a bursting vibrant home to so many species working together. He told her about the stars and how when you were really close to one you could practically feel it's heat, even with the ship's protection, he went into great detail about all the different species that were in the Union- that had been in the Union - and Youro was fascinated by all of it.

Kelly was silent for most of the meal. Ed talking about the galaxy like that just reminded her that all of that was gone now. That anyone who was still alive was on their last leg. That the Union had failed. That she had failed.

Kelly was only too glad to leave the group once the meal was over and Zan set up beds for them all to sleep on. 

At some point in the night Kelly woke up, she had forgotten that outside of their climate controlled ships desert planets like this got cold at night and she was freezing. She got up as quietly as she could and padded over to where Ed was, laying down next to him and trying to cypher off some of his body heat. Apparently she wasn't quiet enough because he woke up and groggily asked into the darkness "Kelly?"

"Sorry Ed, I didn't mean to wake you. Figured if we're going to be married might as well get used to it."

"It's okay, I'm glad you're here."

Kelly wasn't sure what exactly it was about what he said that caused the floodgates to open, maybe it was just how he said it, as sincere as everything else he had said to her since they'd met, but the next thing she knew tears were streaming from her eyes and she had to cover her mouth to stop herself from sobbing out loud.

"Kelly, what's wrong?"

"This is my fault Ed. The Kaylon taking over, all those people dying, their blood is on my hands! If I had said yes to you, you'd be Captain, Claire would be you chief of medicine, Isaac wouldn't have turned! I destroyed the galaxy! I did this!"

Ed Mercer was silent for a moment as he pulled Kelly into a hug "Kelly, you can't blame yourself for the actions of others. Isaac isn't your responsibility. The universe isn't your burden to bear."

"How can you say that when we're Union officers!"

"It was on everyone that none of us saw this coming. Every Admiral and Captain in the fleet missed this, every race. You can't take all the blame Kelly. Just because something different happened in some other timeline doesn't make this your fault." Ed paused "A great leader once said _'Life's like a movie, write your own ending.'_ you don't have to do what the other timeline did. We have a chance here. We're one of the lucky ones."

"Didn't Kermit the Frog say that?"

"Kermit's a great leader!"

Kelly giggled despite herself. "You know in the other timeline, you had a Kermit on you desk. I guess some things don't change."

Ed grabbed her hand in his and kissed it softly "I'm glad some things don't."

"I have a sneaking suspicion that we'd end up together in every timeline."

 

He smirked softly, "Like we're inevitable."

 

She smiled back, "Like we're inevitable."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm always caught between writing things the American way and writing the things the correct (British) way. I think I've just decided if the character is American dialogue is American but my narration will be in British English thank you very much.
> 
> Also if you know you know "I am inevitable." *wink*.


	4. His Hour Upon The Stage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trigger Warning  
> Suicide Mentions
> 
> Only in this chapter and there will be a chapter summery in the next chapter in case you don't want to read this chapter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW Suicide, happens off screen in the past but deals with the aftermath from another character POV.

Ozawa didn't comment on waking up to find Kelly and Ed in drastically different positions than when she had gone to sleep, although she did raise an eyebrow when the new (old?) couple had to untangle themselves from each other.

They gather the little stuff they have with them, say goodbye to Zan, Olies and Youro and are soon on their way to Moclas II's capital to speak with their leader Haveena.

Admiral Chiyoko Ozawa came fully equipped with the full census of everyone on their ships, their species, skill sets and ranks within the now defunct Union. One of the weirdest things she'd learnt when the Kaylon had attacked was that the union worked. Even when the command structure had fallen apart, her ship had still respected her command, still followed protocol, still did what she asked without question and no one ever gave up hope even when they'd been floating in space for 9 months without coming across another living being. Even when their distress signal could draw in the wrong kind of attention.

They'd been lucky Ed and Kelly had found them, although form the tired looks on all of their faces their crew had also been lucky to find the Olympia.

Ozawa had been running on empty for months, she had no plan, she had no back up and she had no second in command. She understood why he did it, why he took his own life, there was no hope. there was no way they would survive this new Kaylon infested universe without being blown to smithereens by a race of megalomaniacal robots and she had respected the hell out of him the whole time they'd served together but that didn't stop the little niggle on her brain that told her he was a coward. Part of being a leader was giving hope even when their was none, even under the greatest amounts of pressure and he'd left her to deal with everything alone.

She'd wanted to promote her third in command but he had declined, which Ozawa couldn't fault him for. Who wanted to be in charge when everything was falling apart? Who wanted a promotion when the guy they had all looked up to had killed himself?

 

She hadn't realised how much the crew had missed a second in command until Ed came into her cockpit, sat in his seat and people started calling him 'Sir'. Ed had never been Captain or First Mate abroad a ship, he'd come close a couple times but in the end no one had thought he was ready to make captain, especially with his friendship with disgraced pilot Gordon Malloy and his love of old earth media. Seeing him now, making a plan, leading them, working along side his own small crew and her larger one, inspiring hope when she couldn't, had made her regret never giving him the chance before the Union had collapsed.

Seeing him now, she knows he would have made a great Captain. She regretted passing him over for a command position of The USS Orville. She told him as much on the drive over and Kelly agreed with a proud smile.

She hadn't been aware the two had known each other, and according to their story they'd only been on the same crew for a few days up to that point. Ozawa didn't want to ask how they'd gotten so close so quickly, the literal apocalypse can do that to people. It makes you realise what you're missing, makes you realise what you want and it makes you unafraid to risk it all by asking the things you would never dare to ask if you couldn't die at any moment.

When they actually met Haveena she was incredibly welcoming, she reminded Chiyoko of some of the other woman in the admiralty, of her own mentor when she'd been coming up in the Union. She was wise and she had compassion and when Ozawa started her elevator pitch on why she should let her people stay on her planet she was waved off "The decisions already been made Admiral Ozawa, of course your people can stay here. This meeting is about working out the details. We're have a small population and by the very nature of our existence we were never planning for a rapid expansion but I can give you land to build your homes, help with starting your farms, whatever you need."

"Thank you Haveena." It felt like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders "You have no idea how grateful we are."

"It's the least we can do after we sat by and watched the Kaylon take over."

Ozawa shook her head "You don't owe us anything. You did right by your people, that's all anyone can ask for in a good leader."

The two shook hands, and an understanding passed between them. They were both the highest ranking delegates of their people, they both had to grapple with the hard choices, they both had hundreds of lives depending on them. Now they would work together to achieve their goals.

 

Chiyoko Ozawa was glad Haveena had brought up farms. It wasn't often referenced or talked about since everyone who boarded a Union vessel already knew but food synthesiser food wasn't really the same as regular food. That's why they had the mess hall, a place where they could eat real food, they all had a cap on how much synthesised food they could eat daily. Although after 9 months with no way to pick up supplies Ozawa had pretty much thrown that rule out of the window and just made sure everyone was monitored by the medical staff. She could feel the strain of only eating synthesised food when she got a bad case of heart burn and a few people had been reduced to puking but thankfully it hadn't had too many adverse reactions on her crew so far. Getting back to some actual food would be great for everyone and it would mean she could stop worrying that her entire crew would just drop dead one day.

Haveena pulled up a map of the planet and pointed out some of the small communities that had rooted up and then to where they had parked their own ships that housed what they believed to the be the last vestiges of the Union. "If you look here, there's some a large area of land here which has good farm land not to far form land with good foundations. If you fly you ship here instead," she pointed to a large open space near where she wanted them to set up camp "You can move all your people there and start building. Just remember when you're building to be conscious of the environment."

"Of course. Thank you Haveena."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I went Kelly POV, Kelly POV, Ed POV and now Ozawa POV. Also I gave her a first name Chiyoko, it means 'a thousand generations'. She's a lofty character, I figured she could use a lofty name.
> 
> Also trying to balance Kelly and Ozawa's higher Union status with Kaylon Era!Ed and Ed's natural leadership skills form the regular timeline is so tricky. Ed's the main character, he's the Captain but he never did that here.


	5. To Be More Than What You Were

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Kaylon may be smart but they weren't infallible. They didn't understand that very human (biological) desperate need to keep going, to live, to rebel when oppressed. They didn't understand that members of the Union would keep going until they couldn't go any more.
> 
> There were people still out there. People who had been missed by the Kaylons and they might not have food, or power or a safe place like this to escape to. 
> 
> "What if we went back out there?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you didn't read the last chapter because of the TW it was basically a chapter from Ozawa's POV, talking about how Ed and Kelly seemed close and how cool Haveena was for letting them stay on her planet. She gave them a plot of land and is going to help them set up houses and farms.
> 
> If anything in that chapter ever becomes relevant to the plot I'll put it in the notes.

A thought kept crossing Ed's mind.

 

He and Gordon had survived by themselves for 9 months. Ozawa and the Olympia had escaped the wrath of the Kaylon altogether. Even Alara Kitan and her Resistance had managed to scrape by for some time until they'd been found.

The Kaylon may be smart but they weren't infallible. They didn't understand that very human (biological) desperate need to keep going, to live, to rebel when oppressed. They didn't understand that members of the Union would keep going until they couldn't go any more.

There were people still out there. People who had been missed by the Kaylons and they might not have food, or power or a safe place like this to escape to. 

They were out there with no one to save them.

"What are you thinking?" Kelly asked him. the two had been sitting by themselves, eating a traditional Moclan meal which wasn't nearly as bad as it sounded, and Ed had been uncharacteristically quiet.

"What if we went back out there?"

"What?"

"I know we talked about setting down here. Learning to farm, getting married, having kids but what if there are people out there who are still alive and scared to death? What if we could save them?"

Kelly looked at him a pained expression on her face "Would we bring them back here? You know the more times we leave and come back the more chance this place would get discovered."

"We'd have to ask Haveena. I would never endanger her people like that without her permission."

 

Kelly was silent for a moment and she ate another mouthful of whatever her dish was called "You know I'd follow you anywhere Captain Ed Mercer."

 

"And I trust you with my life Commander Kelly Grayson."

 

 

When they took their idea to Ozawa and Haveena there was a lot of silence. Haveena pointed out the same security concerns that Kelly had and Ed had no counter argument. It was true, if the Kaylons followed them they would all be screwed. Ozawa just looked tired "Mercer, if you do this I can't order anyone to go with you. _I_ can't go with you."

"We totally understand that Admiral. We won't force anyone to come but the Universe is in a state of Emergency. Where there's an evil overlord, there's always a resistance."

"I agree. I have already expressed my sentiment of sadness for not doing anything to help. Now you present me with a small way in which I can aid the universe, to be the home base of the resistance. We are a large planet, with a large amount of land. If you find people out there to save I would be happy to house them. Just make sure you're careful when you come back here, it's everyone's lives on the line."

Ozawa nodded in agreement "You can take my ship once we're all settled and it's repaired. We'll keep the scavenger ship here. I'll also put out a notice, see who wants to follow you on your quest."

"That's all we can really ask for." Kelly replied, thankfully.

 

 

It took a few days to get everyone moved into the area. The first thing everyone did was start building. With the help of the Moclans and the matter synthesisers they had enough sturdy, solid structures that Ed could start thinking about taking the Olympia out.

People talked while they worked and apart form their discussions on settling there was also the discussion of joining the Resistance.

When it finally came time to take a register of those who wanted in on their new mission it had become abundantly clear that there was more interest than Ed had thought there would be. The crew was still half the size of what would have been on the Orville but it was a decent crew with a variety of skills.

Bortus was the first one to formally approach Ed and Kelly about it "I would like to accompany you on your mission."

"Bortus are you sure? We don't really know what's out there and you're still recovering from your isolation. This could very well be a suicide mission-"

"My mate is dead. My child is dead. And my planet is destroyed."

He didn't say it but the subtext was clear; he had nothing left to live for. Kelly's face crinkled "Bortus... We would love to have you on board the crew, just don't-" Don't get yourself killed' probably wasn't the most tactful thing she could say at that moment "don't do anything stupid, okay?" 

"Aye Commander."

 

Bortus wasn't alone in his feelings "I know all of you have lost family, friends, homes," anyone who didn't have their family on board the Olympia had likely lost hope of finding their loved ones "and I know you're scared but as long as we're still here the Union still exists and we'll do what the Planetary Union has always done. We'll boldly go where ever we have to, we'll bring peace and order to a lawless universe and we'll watch each others backs as we do so. We're a rebellion, a resistance to the Kaylon threat and I know many of you have lost hope that things could get better but I don't want any of you going off half cocked and with a death wish. The universe needs you, this crew needs you. This is unlike any assignment or mission any of us have ever done before. This is a rescue mission and a war all at once, we are on the front lines and we might be the only ones on the front lines but we all managed to make it this far and we won't be the only ones. The universe is huge. We're going to find as many people as we can and get them back here home free. Haveena has been so kind to let as come and go freely so long as we try our best not to be detected which means we won't be back here until the ship is full from people we've rescued. Which means once we're in the air there's no turning back. This is your last chance to stay put and your last chance to join us.

All that being said, who's with me?"


	6. The Sweeter Welcome

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ed's first move was to seek out Alara Kitan's old Resistance base. They may have been beaten down but they were bound to have information and resources that the Kaylon wouldn't have been interested in that they could take.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The amount of times I wrote Alara and had to cross it out and replace it with Talla :-/ 😑

Ed's first move was to seek out Alara Kitan's old Resistance base. They may have been beaten down but they were bound to have information and resources that the Kaylon wouldn't have been interested in that they could take.

He put together his team John LaMarr obviously, he had the closest ties to the old Resistance Networks; but also Bortus, Talla and Gordon. He considered bringing some of the Olympia's security crew but he didn't know how they'd react to him putting Talla in charge since their own chief of security had stayed on Moclas II with Ozawa. He hoped none of them minded, Talla was after all higher ranked than all of them, even if she was an outsider when it came to the Olympia, it's not like rank really mattered in the apocalypse. He wasn't even a Captain and yet here he was acting like one.

They had their long range scanners on at all times in case a Kaylon ship came into range but the Olympia must have some inf od good luck charm or something because they managed to get to the base undetected and without too much trouble.

They entered the base, guns up and tensions high. The last time they'd been here they'd barely gotten out. The place was deserted and their were a couple bodies littered around the place although not nearly as many as Ed had expected, "John, download as much info as you can. Talla, Bortus... search these guys for anything useful. Kelly you're with me, we're looking for anything useful."

Kelly nodded and they all split off into their jobs. Kelly came across a crate of canned fruits and vegetables pretty quick and Ed found some preserved meats that they got Bortus to push to the entrance for them since they were still very much good. "I feel like a scavenger." Ed frowned as he watched Tall rifle through the pockets of dead men and pocket the comm systems they had on them.

Kelly agreed "I know the feeling but it has to be done."

"Hey guys, you're gonna want to see this!" John called from the row of screens.

"What is it LaMarr?"

"The Lieutenant had a code that the resistance used sometimes to communicate plans and locations in case they had to leave in a hurry or to get messages long range undetected."

"What was the code?"

"Alara used the Gibby Method, getting messages and every couple of words or letters spliced together made up a message. Of course that's too easy so she also used Leat speak."

"Leat speak?" Kelly inquired.

"It's like mixing numbers and letters to make a word. Like how robots can't read Captcha messages. The Gibby code with the Captcha confused them apparently but us humans can read it with a little big of reworking." John pressed a few keys and zoomed out "And we have co-ordinates."

Alara typed them into her wrist computer and her eyes widened "That location is on this planet!"

Ed gasped "The resistance is still alive?"

"According to this at least." LaMarr confirmed. He tried not to get his hopes up, Alara was the kind of person who would go down with the ship but he hadn't seen her body here. Maybe she was alive and leading there.

"Bortus, Talla get these crates on the shuttle; John wipe everything except that message from this system. make sure everything's backed up. I'm going to call the bridge."

"Mercer to Bridge, we found co-ordinates that may lead us to living members of the resistance. Prep for possible new arrivals."

"Bridge to Mercer, message received. Prepping now."

 

Between the technological prowess of John LaMarr and the strength of Talla and Bortus; they were all done and back in the shuttle pretty quickly.

They'd left Gordon in the shuttle in case they needed to make a quick getaway from any lingering Kaylon, a 'leave the car running' sort of situation so when they went to get flying they found Gordon engrossed in some music he was listening to through his earpiece, he was drumming away on the counter in front of him "Gordon." Ed tried to get his attention quickly but the red headed man didn't seem to hear him "Gordon!" Ed looked around, the rest of the team was staring at him, waiting to get moving to possible allies in their fight "MALLOY!"

"What? Oh hey Ed. Where to?"

"Talla sent you the co-ordinates."

"Right, let's go then. Strap in."

The smooth flight, even in the low visibility cold whether reminded Ed why they'd brought Gordon with them instead of Olympia's pilot. Malloy was the best pilot in the fleet, or at least he was back when there was a fleet. They wound up in a very unassuming location "Fan out team, there's got to be something somewhere." There was no obvious doors or scanners, nothing that would indicate a secret base around there but Alara had sent them there and none of them were about to give up hope just yet.

"Captain!" John called. tapping a very metallic sheet of ice that had formed, it looked like it used to be a waterfall but had frozen over as it was still running.

"You think there's something behind there?"

"I mean it's the only place I can think of."

"Talla, can you open this jar of pickles?"

Talla cracked her knuckles as she walked towards them, she drew back her fist and prepared to strike the ice with her incredible power but right before she could a voice from the other side of the ice yelled "WAIT! DON'T!"

They all froze, looking at each other weirdly.

"Did that water fall just talk?" Gordon asked the group.

"No you idiot." The water fountain spoke again "It's me Yaphitt."

"Yaphitt? You're a water fountain?" The pilot whispered to the ice.

Slowly the thin layer of shine on top of the ice started to move and come together. As it bunched up it started to gain a gelatinous bright green tinge to it "I'm look out."

Slowly the giant ice wall started creaking and moving to the side and the new Olympia crew stared in awe.

 

"Welcome to the Resistance."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Every Fourth. _Word._
> 
> iCarly references anyone?
> 
> That's right. Kaylons can't read Captcha codes and they can't tick the 'I'm not a robot' button!
> 
> \------------  
> Act III, Scene I


	7. Double Trust

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW Passing/minor mentions of PTSD, survivor's guilt and suicide.

Claire Finn had wanted to go. She had wanted to get back onto the Olympia and follow Ed and Kelly to the ends of the Universe, after all she went where she was needed and she was definitely needed out there but she was also needed here. She had two kids to look after and she'd already dragged them on how many last ditch efforts and hair brained schemes to save the galaxy, but that was when that was their only shot. Now they had a colony, they were safe.

A lot of Ozawa's medical staff had gone back out there, they had similar mottos after all _'Do No Harm'_ , and a lot of them didn't have families, so it wasn't necessarily a shock but it also meant that Ozawa had placed quite a lot of trust in her. She was probably the most experienced Union medic still left on the planet so it made sense that she had been put in charge of logging anything in their area that could be a health hazard and making sure months of only synthesised food hadn't been to harsh on the crew.

She also accompanied Ozawa to her meetings with Haveena and it took a while for Claire to figure out why Chiyoko kept asking her to come.

 

Ozawa had no second in command. Her chief of security was well respected and well liked by everyone but he had seen what had happened to his Commander in that position and no one was keen to fill it except Ozawa who had been bearing the full wait of her responsibility for months. Claire went where she was needed and right now, even if she didn't have all the right credentials, she was needed as the Commander.

No one officially gave her the title, why bother when the Union was gone but everyone seemed to get the memo that if Ozawa wasn't available, ask Finn.

It was weird, she'd always been much more of the mentor type than the leader type, and she had never envied any of the Admirals even with all the respect, prestige and power they commanded. Claire had never had the authority but people listened to her when she talked because she was an expert in her field and she knew how the world worked.

Ty and Marcus had grown up a lot since everything had gone down, they didn't fight with each other any more, Marcus helped out more, he snapped out of his moody teen phase really quick and whilst she was glad they were getting along better she knew that was likely just a symptom of the kind of PTSD you get when you're the one who survived and everyone else is gone. Claire knows that feeling well. She knows it when she looks works with the Olympia med team and she thinks about all her colleagues who she left behind on her last posting to go with Kelly, she knows it when she looks in the mirror and she thinks about her personal oath 'I go where I'm needed' She had been needed there and she'd left and she was needed out there and she'd stayed and people needed her all over the universe and it felt like she was being pulled in every direction at once and suddenly she wasn't just a doctor she was a politician, a farmer, a leader, a teacher, a mother-

 

The kids.

 

The kids had lost people too. They still had to attend classes with the teachers and Claire had even taught a few, a lot of them helped with the farming afterwards, but one this was clearly not being dealt with. Their mental health. Survivor's guilt hit hard at the best of times, this was a 1 in a million type of situation for these kids. Everyone else was dead, none of them should even be alive right now. Claire was one of the few people qualified to deal with these kinds of mental traumas but she had no idea she was going to help any of those kids when she herself felt like she was drowning in guilt.

It had been a few weeks before she matched every child to every parent and she realised that one kid talked about her father a lot and Claire had never seen him and it was only when she'd glanced at a class list that it clicked in her head. The girl's name was Zara Alum. 

Alum was the name of Ozawa's first mate, the man who escaped the Kaylon threat by himself. He had a family? He had a family that were on the ship with him and he'd left them. If Alum had snapped and ended his whole family in a misguided attempt at mercy, that would make more sense to Finn than leaving his wife and daughter to be captured by the Kaylon instead.

Claire was honestly glad he didn't do that to them, didn't take them with him, but seeing the way Zara talked about her father cemented in Claire's mind that she was exactly where she was supposed to be. With her kids safe.

 

Where she was needed.

 

Those kids needed her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dr Finn POV


	8. The Lord's Anointed Temple

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John wasn’t sure what he expected to happen when the waterfall moved to the side to reveal a huge doorway but it hadn’t been two Union officers with guns pointed at them with Alara Kitan stood, feet apart, arms on hips, a stern expression on her face and a smug smirk on her lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was going to call this chapter Olympia' because it's a cool name for a ship (no offence but that's a cooler name than the Orville) but I wanted to keep my motif of using lines from Macbeth since in the title i took a page out of Macbeth's 'Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow" soliloquy.
> 
> Seth started it, I'm just finishing what he started.

John wasn’t sure what he expected to happen when the waterfall moved to the side to reveal a huge doorway but it hadn’t been two Union officers with guns pointed at them with Alara Kitan stood, feet apart, arms on hips, a stern expression on her face and a smug smirk on her lips.

 

The emotion caught in John’s throat. He’d been disingenuous when he’s said he had a friend in the resistance, he and Alara had been friends for years but they’d also been a lot more than that.

 

They had been each other’s everything’s until suddenly they hadn’t. She’d become a resistance leader and he’s become a resistance spy, they could barely talk yet alone see each other and they were both so busy.

 

Sometimes when his reports back to base were shorter he would write an A at the end to let Alara know he was thinking of her. Sometimes when John got his missions Alara would sign them ‘J’ so he knew she was looking out for him.

 

John couldn’t help it when he stepped forward and pulled her into a hug, Alara had taken to Kelly’s leadership distance, she was tough in front of her troops but just this once she let him hug her in front of everyone because he’d obviously thought she was dead and if she was honest she hadn’t been sure about John’s own status either.

It was dangerous out there.

 

It was for that reason that when they parted and she ordered everyone inside and out of sight, she grabbed John’s hand. She wasn’t usually this affectionate with him in public, she didn’t want any of her subordinates to think she prioritised him over them just because she was sweet on him, but they’d been through enough together that no one would think that of her at this point.

 

They say around a huge meeting table, with Ed’s crew on one side, her own team on the other and all the lower level Ensigns sitting and standing around listening as they exchanged stories “We found the USS Olympia.”

 

“Ozawa?”

 

She’s alive and well. We also found a safe haven, a lot of the crew stayed put but since we thought you guys had been wiped out...” Ed trailed off.

 

“You decided to pick up where we left off.” Alara finished for him. “When you came here before, you had a plan. What happened?”

 

Kelly sighed “It almost worked but the Orville didn’t have enough power.”

 

“And you can’t use the Olympia’s power for your crazy scheme?”

 

John shook his head ruefully, “I’ve looked into it. The Olympia went offline for 9 months, we managed to get it up and running again just fine but it’s never been the same since. The reserve power isn’t being stored which means the Olympia doesn’t have enough power either.”

 

“So you need a Planetary Union Starcraft with a shit tonne of energy.”

 

“Don’t suppose you have one of those?” Talla asked, only half sarcastic.

 

“Unfortunately I don’t, we’ve been getting by on half broken, cobbled together ships. But maybe we can figure something out.”

 

“Maybe.” Kelly agreed hopeful that maybe she would get to save the universe after all.

 

“So...” Ed started “What do we do now? You’ve been doing this a lot longer and we don’t exactly have a plan.”

 

“I’ll give you some tips on how to avoid detection, some contacts we have. You guys are running rescue missions you said? Maybe one of them has seen something that would be useful to you. Other than that, I don’t know what more you can do. I don’t even know what more I can do. The Kaylon found us once and we barely escaped with our lives. We don’t have another backup plan.”

 

John grabbed her hand “Come with us!”

 

“John...”

 

“You can do everything your doing now except in the air. And your guys are way more experienced, think of all the good we could do with our ship and your skills!”

 

“John I don’t think I can just uproot the Resistance. We have to be stationary, we need a home base.”

 

Ed bit his lip, not wanting to hurt John anymore than he already was being but from a strategic point of view Alara was right. They needed a place where they could meet, they needed a base that could be found and they really shouldn’t put all their resistance eggs in one Olympian basket.

 

John looked at her, and when he looked he saw the sun and the moon and every star in the galaxy because he wanted her to be his everything but there was so much riding on them. They _weren't_ everything. He knew she was right, in his heart of hearts he knew she couldn’t go with him. She wouldn’t lead the Resistance down a bad path with her and she wouldn’t leave them, but with their own crazy time travel plan LaMare couldn’t leave the Olympia either.

 

 

“I know." John said sadly, he seemed to her forgotten that the entire resistance was standing around watching them, "I’ll miss you.”

 

 

It almost wasn’t fair that Kelly and Ed seemed to come together in every timeline when Alara and John seemed to get ripped apart.

 

 

It wasn’t fair that there would be a whole universe between them. 

 

 

They were cursed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why did I say Starcraft instead of Spacecraft or Spaceship?  
> Is this John POV? Is this Alara POV? Is this Ed POV? Who knows.
> 
> \------------  
> Act II, Scene III


	9. Hover Through The Fog

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gordon realised maybe he was lucky he’d didn’t have a girlfriend, that he was an only child that his parents had passed away.
> 
> It made it hurt less when everyone was already gone.

Gordon realised maybe he was lucky he’d didn’t have a girlfriend, that he was an only child that his parents had passed away. It made it hurt less when everyone else was already gone.

 

 

Gordon Malloy was a very social person but apart from Ed, he was no one’s person. He was no one’s love of their life, no one’s son, no one’s one and only. He felt bad for John after he’d said his goodbyes to a woman he clearly loved with everything in him and who lived him back and as they went their separate ways after Alara had given them contacts, information, and tricks to avoiding the Kaylon.

 

He patted LaMarr in the back sympathetically and felt glad once again that he and Ed has stayed together through out this whole mess.

 

It was crazy how much everything had changed on that day.

 

He’d been visiting Ed on his outpost since he still couldn’t seem to get himself out of the piloting dog house with the Union so he might as well make the most of it.

 

 

He sometimes wondered what would have happened if he hadn’t gone that day. Would he have made it out? Would Ed? The two had made it to a shuttle out of pure luck and they’d gotten out of there because Gordon Malloy could fly like a mad man when he needed to.

 

It had saved them all on more than 1 occasion and was probably the only reason the Union has kept him on retainer instead of just firing him like so many of them definitely had wanted to.

 

Now here he was, on the crew of the Captain of the Resistance. 

 

Once they’d gotten back in the air John pointed out that they should start checking Planetary Union bases for supplies and for people. Ed agreed and asked him and the Olympia pilot, Jurnee Monroe to help him plot a course to as many different bases as possible in their quadrant.

 

It was weird working with another pilot, usually it was a pretty singular solo job, fly the ship to where ever the Captain wanted but like Ed has said before they left, this wasn’t like other missions. There was no directive. They decided where to go.

 

People came by with ideas of where they could go and places that might have resources stockpiled and places people could hide in a pinch.

 

Malloy and Monroe worked out their schedules so there was always a pilot of shift flying and for a few hours a day they overlapped so they could discuss their flight plans.

 

She was fun to work with even if she was a lot more serious than he was, and she had definitely been dubious about working with him (his reputation had proceeded him) but they got along quite well and they worked well and they'd even hung out off the lock a few times when Ed put a less experienced pilot at the helm to at least try and give him the training hours he'd been going for when that kind of thing mattered. Most people in the union could fly the ships but not everyone was a pilot and for good reason.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gordon POV
> 
> \------  
> Act I, Scene I


	10. To Be Thus Is Nothing, But To Be Safely Thus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The wall opened up to reveal several haggard looking Union scientists scared out of their minds and guns raised up “DIE KAYLON SCUM!” One man yelled
> 
> “YOU’LL NEVER TAKE ME ALIVE!” Another yelled.
> 
> Talla grabbed the blasters out of their hands before they hurt someone “Relax. We’re the cavalry.”

 Their first official stop after checking on Alara’s Resistance had been a science base. They were looking for tech, any kind of medicine and of course, survivors.

At first it was just a whole bunch of nothing, darkened abandoned hallways and flickering lights that made it feel like they’d stepped into a horror movie but soon they got lucky. They med team found loads of medical supplies that they were low on and had started transferring them back to the ship and logging them, John found specs to a new ship engine which he would be looking at to see if he could get the Olympia back to full capacity and Talla found a hollow wall “There’s definitely something behind this wall.” She tapped it and Ed joined her at the wall.

“Is there a lever or a button or something?”

A bunch of them all started feeling up the wall looking for a switch and one guy got lucky when he tripped over and grabbed onto a small dip in the wall for leverage. The wall opened up to reveal several haggard looking Union scientists scared out of their minds and guns raised up “DIE KAYLON SCUM!” One man yelled

“YOU’LL NEVER TAKE ME ALIVE!” Another yelled.

Talla grabbed the blasters out of their hands before they hurt someone “Relax. We’re the cavalry.” She was glad she had decided to continue wearing uniform, not everyone had but the uniform made he feel like part of something bigger but the familiar red of her uniform clearly had a calming affect on the scientists. Her parents and their parents before them on both sides had all been in the Union as security staff, the military was in her blood. This uniform was her last link to her family.

Talla suddenly found herself mobbed by people asking questions, a few people pulled her into a hug one person was just standing there openly sobbing and Talla couldn't exactly blame them, it had been a stressful few months and none of them had the same training that the red and the blues had, they were good at science and they were good at medicine but fighting off killer robots really wasn't in their repertoire. Most docs handled stress like a champ but this was a whole different breed, not even Ozawa's lieutenant had been able to get passed it. Ed and Kelly quickly summarised their goals to the people and they were all only too happy to get aboard the Olympia. A man who was apparently their leader Doctor Ozetki gave them a register with everyone's skills as well as their resources charts.

The Union may have fallen but the organisation skills they taught everyone certainly had not, even in the midst of the apocalypse everyone they'd come across so far had perfect record keeping skills. It certainly made her security checks so much easier, even if the requirements had severely lessened in recent times.

Ed seemed pleased with their progress, it was a mission success on all accounts, they'd picked up much needed supplies and found more survivors in the process. All in all not a bad couple days work. Once they'd given the base another once over and everyone had packed all their stuff into the USS Olympia they were off to their next base and the next planet and the next colony.

 

Sometimes they found people alive and scared and grateful that Ed had come for them, sometimes they just found bodies filled with Kaylon blaster holes. Those days were the hardest.

 

As they flew further from Moclas II it became harder and harder to determine when the right time to turn back was. The ship was filling up but no one was too opposed to the cramped living spaces if it meant saving more people but eventually the would have to return to the hidden planet and drop these people off. But time was off the essence, the time it could take them to get back to base and then back on track could be the time the Kaylon need to track those people down too, it could be the time for those people to lose hope and give up.

Talla was glad she wasn't the Captain because ultimately that decision was Ed's to make and he was conflicted when he made his call but that's what being a leader was about. They turned around and headed back the way they came (or a more direct rout since they didn't have to zig zag across the galaxy). Her nerves were on edge the entire journey and she had every red shirt on look out for Kaylons she'd be damned if they got killed now or stars forbid, if they led them to Moclas II.

Eventually they did make it back to the nebula that hid their safe haven.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Talla POV
> 
> I keep writing calvery instead of cavalry.
> 
> \------  
> Act III, Scene I


	11. You Know Your Own Degrees

Claire had been worried. 

 

They weren't allowed contact with the USS Olympia which means as they were rebuilding their lives on Moclas II all they could do was worry about their friends and their mission.

Not for the first time, Claire wondered if she'd made the right choice by staying behind and even more so when the parameter alarms went off to warn them of an approaching ship. 

 

Admiral Ozawa got the scavenger ship in the air, newly outfitted weapons ready to blast any Kaylons that entered the system, around her civilians ducked into cover and fighters grabbed weapons, prepared to make their last stand and go down fighting, Claire pulled her own kids to safety and then Ty yelled excitedly "Look! It's the Olympia!"

He was right, it was the Olympia. She stepped out of her hiding place, keeping Ty and Marcus behind her just in case it was some kind of trick but they must have passed the security check because Ozawa let them land.

Talla and Bortus escorted some new faces off of the ship and they looked around in wonder, some people even got reunited with old friends from their days at the academy or someone they'd once served with which led to many tearful hugs, after a while Mercer, Grayson and Ozawa were all off their ships and discussing their progress int he different stages of rebuilding their lives.

Talla gave them the reports on the different people they had picked up, medics, fighters, engineers and even a couple hundred civilians who had been cut off from the world at some festival in honour of the old Earth celebration Fyre Fest. Most of them wanted to stay here, they were tired of fighting, but a couple did remain onboard the Olympia to help. There weren't a lot of children, only those who had permanent postings had brought their families with them, everyone else was... well everyone else was in mourning.

Ozawa told them about the farming process, gave them numbers on how much food they could stock the Olympia with, how house building was going, how they'd fixed up the scavenger ship and even repainted it with Union colours and given it a name "We called it the USS Freedom." Ozawa smiled.

Kelly smiled back "That's a great name."

"We've really built a life here, and it's all thanks to you guys."

Ed shook his head "We may have gotten you here, but you built this for yourselves." Ed looked different. He looked tireder. Leadership takes it's tolls, Claire knew that, after all she was basically second in command around here. "Oh and we check in on the Resistance proper, they're still up and functioning, Lieutenant Alara Kitan has back up plans galore."

Claire nodded, she was glad to hear they were okay "Are you going to check back in with them on your way out?"

Ed sighed "I'm not sure. If things were normal I absolutely would but things aren't normal. The more contact we have the more chances of being caught there are. What do you think Admiral?"

She sighed too "I haven't been out there doing what you do, when we were out there all I had to do was keep everyone on my ship alive, you're actually going places, doing missions that the Union has never really done. I think at this point Ed you and Grayson are the only ones who can make those decisions."

Kelly bit her lip "I think we should check in with Alara, we don't pass that area of space all that often we should make the most of it."

 

"Captain Mercer, Commander Grayson I would like to propose something. I am the last admiral left that we know of and my place is here on Moclas II rebuilding as much as we can and keeping everything running planet side. What you two do is very different. I would like to propose a promotion, I would like to make the both of you Admirals.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everyone's getting promotions. Alara is a leader, Claire is second in command and now these two are gonna be admirals.
> 
> \-------------  
> Act III, Scene IV 


End file.
